Liu Zihao had made a fortune.
So had the other early dealers.
They were the first to take a risk on Audi Motors—and now, they were reaping the rewards.
"Those who dare to eat crab first get the meat," Haifeng thought.
"And they deserve it."
They had stepped up at the beginning. And now?
They had become living proof to future investors that following Haifeng means profit.
The first wave of distributors had also delivered a massive marketing impact.
"They're not just selling cars," Haifeng realized.
"They're building my brand."
That early momentum would make recruiting distributors for future brands far easier.
Of course, Audi Motors couldn't build hundreds of 4S stores under China Star directly.
"Our limit is one experience store in each major city," he noted.
Too many direct-operated stores would strain management.
Haifeng still needed dealers, and this launch had made it crystal clear that working with him pays.
In his office, Haifeng sat down and calculated the total earnings from the A4's first-day orders.
The average cost per vehicle—including R&D, materials, marketing, and dealer margins—was under ¥200,000 (≈ $27,520).
The average sale price landed around ¥300,000 (≈ $41,280).
That meant?
¥100,000 (≈ $13,760) net profit per car.
"One car, ¥100,000.
Ten cars, ¥1 million.
A thousand cars, ¥100 million…"
"Sixty thousand cars?"
¥6 billion. (≈ $825 million in a single day.)
Haifeng leaned back, stunned.
"This is more profitable than phones."
And more importantly?
Unlike the mobile phone market, this space is safe.
No risk of being strangled by outside tech or supply chains.
Audi's auto tech stack was entirely domestic.
There were no critical dependencies—no weak links.
Sure, the profit margin was around 50%, which wasn't extreme.
But unlike internet companies with one-off sales, this was repeatable.
"Every single vehicle brings in another 50% return," he said to himself.
"And we're just getting started."
Unlike flashy valuation models or vapor-money startups,
Haifeng's auto business had real cash flow, factories, and production lines.
"Internet companies may look rich on paper," he thought,
"But most can't take out even 20% of their net worth in cash."
"And those same internet giants?
They're now fighting to break into the real industry—because they know their valuations are fragile."
Haifeng smiled.
"In the end, real industry wins."
Just one model, the Audi A4, had brought in ¥6 billion in profit on day one.
"At this rate, ¥10 billion per year is inevitable.
And we're not going to stop at one car."
Still, even with all that success… Haifeng couldn't relax.
"There's still debt. Still expanding. Still factories to build and labs to fund."
"It may look like we're sitting on mountains of money—but it'll go fast."
He smiled wryly, shaking his head.
In that moment of quiet, Zhao Jianhua walked in.
He saw Haifeng smiling, frowning, nodding—all at once.
"Did the orders fry his brain?" he wondered.
"President Lu," he said, "you're shocked, right?"
"Sixty thousand units. One day. I bet you didn't see this coming."
Haifeng snapped out of it and smiled.
"Yeah. I didn't expect it."
"When I saw the 11 a.m. sales data, I thought 20,000 to 30,000 was already a stretch."
"But 60,000? It's madness."
Zhao grinned.
"We're gonna be buried in orders."
"And this is just day one. Who knows how many more are coming?"
Haifeng nodded.
"Even if we ramp up to 1,400 units daily,
it'll take three to four months to fulfill just today's demand."
"We'll have to pace ourselves. Can't sacrifice quality."
"Our brand's under a global spotlight.
One slip—and the whole world will pounce."